Team Giannis defeated Team LeBron 184-175 in an All-Star Game that saw Jayson Tatum collect MVP honors, scoring 55 points on 22-for-31 shooting to set the record for the most points scored in an All-Star Game.
In one of the NBA’s more memorable recent showcases, neither James nor Antetokounmpo played in the entire game.
Antetokounmpo started and scored the game’s first points on a dunk 15 seconds into the game. Nursing a hand injury suffered prior to the weekend festivities, Antetokounmpo then committed a foul and was replaced by Bam Adebayo.
"Winner winner, chicken dinner." 🏆#TeamGiannis x #PhantomCam pic.twitter.com/qybeyfmUJc
— NBA (@NBA) February 20, 2023
James played the first half and finished with 13 points, four rebounds and an assist in 14 minutes, but was ruled out for the second half with a right-hand contusion.
This was the first All-Star Game in which Team LeBron was defeated and much of that success for Team Giannis came in the second half, after James was removed following a hand injury.
Tatum provided the spark in the second half, scoring an All-Star record 27 points in the third quarter and adding another 18 in the fourth quarter to power the win. He also finished with 10 rebounds and six assists.
At halftime, James was honored with an elaborate ceremony for becoming the NBA’s all-time leading scorer on Feb. 8. In it, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar — whom he passed to get to No. 1 — and Jazz legend Karl Malone (the NBA’s No. 3 all-time scorer) shared an embrace with James after he was honored for his feat.
As for the draft, Antetokounmpo went first and James second as they took turns picking their squads from the available list of reserves, then reversed order for picking starters.
Antetokounmpo was named a team captain and starter for the 2023 NBA All-Star Game, in late January.
This marked the seventh consecutive season that he has been voted an All-Star Game starter and the third time he has been selected as a team captain.
With his seventh All-Star selection, Antetokounmpo passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most All-Star selections in franchise history.
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